Because my daughter wanted to try it, mostly based on the name, drank half of a Stone Brewing W00tstout, http://www.stonebrewing.com/collab/w00tstout/ last week, which I found to be suprisingly fantastic! It could almost make me like wheat beer...The pecan and bourbon go together so well with the malt...but it's still not too sweet somehow. Really need to pick up another or three...

Otherwise, I did get two bottles of the Midnight Sun limited edition Berserker, and was less than thrilled. It is sweet, molassesy, almost pruney. I loved the viscosity, but it was a bit much. I'll leave the other bottle in the cellar for a year and check it out then.

I think I've found bliss.. a Sierra Nevada Torpedo (from the pint can of course) followed by a DFH 90 Minute IPA. The refreshing malt from the 90 dances with the bitterness still on the tongue from the Torpedo. If eternal damnation wasn't potentially in the cards, I would try to blend the two in the glass. Just once.

Eternal damnation be damned... Tonight I blended a 50/50 mix of 90 Minute IPA and Torpedo both from bottle, in a full pint tulip. The pour was a bit sloppy as I wanted to be as close to 50/50 as possible. The result was interesting, albeit mostly predictable. The hops from the Torpedo held up and didn't seem dinished at first. However the malt of the 90 was very much lightened. The cool thing is that the Torpedo didn't linger the way it usually would. The 90 never caught up although there was a note of caramel on the back.

I'm glad I tried it but the real result was just a waste of a perfectly good 90 Minute IPA. Everything I like about it wound up being watered down and the kick in the teeth hops of the Torpedo (which I enjoy) weren't lightened a bit. A different ratio would probably yield better results, but I think I'll just stick with enjoying each the way they are for now.

Agave nectar has an interesting effect when used to enhance or augment malt or another sugar source. It does increase the original gravity, but doesn't really add any flavor the way that other dark or less refined sugars do. In the beers where I've used it, it only enhanced the carbonation (ie, made burpy beers).

Eternal damnation be damned... Tonight I blended a 50/50 mix of 90 Minute IPA and Torpedo both from bottle, in a full pint tulip. The pour was a bit sloppy as I wanted to be as close to 50/50 as possible. The result was interesting, albeit mostly predictable. The hops from the Torpedo held up and didn't seem dinished at first. However the malt of the 90 was very much lightened. The cool thing is that the Torpedo didn't linger the way it usually would. The 90 never caught up although there was a note of caramel on the back.

I'm glad I tried it but the real result was just a waste of a perfectly good 90 Minute IPA. Everything I like about it wound up being watered down and the kick in the teeth hops of the Torpedo (which I enjoy) weren't lightened a bit. A different ratio would probably yield better results, but I think I'll just stick with enjoying each the way they are for now.

Interesting experiment nonetheless. I'm typically not a huge fan of IPA's but I absolutely love DFH 90 Minute and think it's one of the best beers on the planet. The hops nose just knocks you over but the ridiculous amount of malt really balances the beer well.

Short term goal: 17:59 5K

Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon

Long term goal:To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).

Beer pours a beautiful deep, dark ruby. It's brown until you hold it to the light and then the wonderful ruby color shines. Head is a luxurious off-white that lingers a bit but then fades into a white ring. Flavor is big but dominated by malt. Up front there is a ton of malty sweetness. The alcohol plays a nice warming counterpoint to the sweetness as does some deep roasted flavors. Creamy mouthfeel with just a smidgen of hops to keep the malt from being completely overwhelming. The finish is a bit dryer than in some dopplebocks but it's still fairly sweet. Just a terrific beer.

Short term goal: 17:59 5K

Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon

Long term goal:To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).

Interesting experiment nonetheless. I'm typically not a huge fan of IPA's but I absolutely love DFH 90 Minute and think it's one of the best beers on the planet. The hops nose just knocks you over but the ridiculous amount of malt really balances the beer well.

That's pretty much why blending 90 with an "Extra" IPA made for a predictable result. I love both for their own notes but I think I just poisoned the gene pool with this one. Torpedo is a simple beer for IPA lovers who want the chewy hops. 90 Minute is a masterpiece in its balance of malt and hops, along with its weight and color. I will continue to try blending, it works so well with wine but wont try to fix anything that aint broke.

Brrr

Uffda

posted: 9/15/2013 at 12:48 PM

Had some of this. It's excellent, but expensive. I guess you get what you pay for.

Once when I was in Italy (25 years ago) I remember seeing domestic (Italian) beers at one price, and imported beers at a slighly higher price. The imported selection included cans of Budweiser (USA) or bottles of Chimay. Makes you wanna cry.

25 years ago, there weren't a whole lot of options for American beers. I think that by 1970, there were only something like 50 or 60 breweries in the United States and there were only a handful of true craft brewers. Most of the brewers other than the national names were regional brewers like Rolling Rock or Yeungling or Lone Star that made pretty much the same flavorless stuff as the national names. Today, there are well over 2,000 brewers and many of them are making terrific beer.

Short term goal: 17:59 5K

Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon

Long term goal:To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).

Time for a review. Up tonight. Southern Tier Iniquity Imperial Black Ale. It's a black DIPA.

Appearance: Black. Damn Black. I tried to get some light to come through this beer and failed. Maybe I'll look again as it gets near the end. The head is an off white that's fairly dense but recedes and remains to leave some decent lacing down the glass.

Smell: The hops are immediately apparent. Lots of grapefruit with some floral notes in the background.

Taste: This is one beer where the nose and the palate are in complete agreement. Up front, there are a ton of hops although the flavor is more floral than bitter - reminiscent of DFH 60 Minute. In the background though, there is just enough sweetness to keep the hops from being overpowering. Roasted character is absent and I'm not sure how brewers can produce a black beer with little to no roasted characteristics. Although it has a 9.0% a.b.v., the alcohol is completely hidden.

Mouthfeel: Thinner than you might expect from the appearance and the finish is dry. Seriously dry. Carbonation is medium.

Overall: Although I'm not a hophead, this is another DIPA done right. The hops are certainly the star of the show but they don't overwhelm the senses to the extent that you might as well be eating some hops. I wish I had more than one of these as I'd love to see how it ages.

Short term goal: 17:59 5K

Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon

Long term goal:To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).

Thanks LTH. Adding another to my shopping list. I've joined ratebeer. I'm building a celler (not a construction zone, but a box full of beer in my basement). I definitely have a thing for beer flavored with bourbon. Am I out of control?

I think I can get southern tier up here. No DFH, no speedway, no bells, not much at all from back east or even midwest. Pretty good local stuff, though and Pac. NW.

Stuck in dry Prudhoe again. Have one for me. Maybe I'll review second hand smoke and midnight sun TREAT, if I can connect with any, later this week.